Effects of testosterone replacement therapy on carotid artery intima-media thickness in middle-aged and elderly male patients / 中华老年医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the effects of testosterone (T) replacement therapy (TRT) on carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) in middle aged and elderly male patients.Methods A total of 80 middle-aged and elderly male patients with testosterone deficiency and increased carotid artery IMT were selected and randomly divided into two groupsthe treatment group (n=38,treated with testosterone for 1 year) and the control group (n=42,without any treatment).The serum T level,IMT and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) before and after treatment were determined.The correlation between the testosterone level and carotid artery IMT was analyzed.Results There were no significant differences in the serum T level and IMT between the control group and the treatment group before treatment [(10.39 ± 1.44) nmol/L vs.(10.88 ± 1.87) nmol/L,(1.25 ±0.11) mm vs.(1.24±0.13) mm,t=1.32,-0.26,P=0.191,0.794].Compared with pretreatment,the serum T level was significantly increased and the IMT was significantly decreased in the treatment group afterTRT [(10.88±1.87) nmol/L vs.(22.83±1.56) nmol/L,(1.24±0.13) mmvs.(1.18±0.16) mm,t=-29.14,2.55,P=0.000,0.015],while no significant differences in the serum T level and IMT were found in the control group before and after treatment [(10.39± 1.44)nmol/L vs.(9.99±1.72) nmol/L,(1.25±0.11) mm vs.(1.27±0.11) mm,t=1.24,-1.00,P =0.219,0.323].Linear correlation analysis showed that the serum T level was negatively correlated with IMT (r-0.605,P=0.000) and multiple regression analysis showed that the T level was an independent factor for IMT.Conclusions Testosterone replacement therapy is an effective treatment to alleviate IMT in middle-aged and elderly male patients,which may play an important role in preventing cardiovascular diseases in middle-aged and elderly male patients.